Posts Tagged ‘Crispin Porter + Bogusky’

Volkswagen of America, Inc. announced today that it has selected Deutsch LA as its new advertising agency of record for the U.S., replacing Crispin Porter + Bogusky of Miami.

It was the third VW advertising agency in less than five years.

Deutsch previously worked for GM’s ill-fated Saturn division.

Crispin et al, an ultra-hip shop from Miami and Boulder, elected not to participate in the agency review ordered by VOA’s top brass.

The latest change, as the one before it, raises questions about where the problem lies. Could something be amiss in Germany?

Deutsch LA will have full advertising responsibility for the Volkswagen brand and its family of products, effective November 1, 2009, and will be responsible for all national and retail advertising, including digital and “experiential” marketing.

“Deutsch LA proved they have a firm grasp on how to manage the complex challenges we face in achieving our significant growth objectives,” said Tim Ellis, Vice President of Marketing, VWoA.

“Of equal importance, they inspired us with a big, compelling, creative idea that will energize and motivate our passionate base as well as attract a broader group of people who have thus far not considered Volkswagen as a relevant choice.”

We shall see about that. Advertising is a world filled with hype, piled on top of previous hype.

Choose TDB!

The sales and business problems VW faces are real, though. Once dominant in the U.S. market as the leading import when the Beetle was king, it is now a mere footnote to the combined sales tables of Japanese and Korean automakers.

Klaus Gmelin, Head of Quality Volkswagen de México, releases the last of the old Beetles in 2003.

With ambitious plans to expand in the U.S. market now beginning to unfold, Volkswagen of America is putting the company advertising work up for review as part of a plan to expand beyond the niches from which it pulls most of its sales.

The company will need a broader message if it plans to more than double its sales over the next decade, VW officials have said.

Steve Keyes, Volkswagen spokesperson, said VOA has not selected a list of agencies that will be asked to make a bid for the VW. However, VOA has recruited an outside firm, Roth Associates of New York, to begin the review process, Keyes said.

Automakers have all been under intense pressure to cut costs. General Motors, for example, recently put vice chairman Robert Lutz in charge of reviewing its marketing efforts with the specific goal of recharging its advertising.

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Chrysler-Fiat also is expected to take a broad look at its advertising and Ford Motor Company. marketing experts said recently that the company planned to move away from the expensive television time, which has been one of the hallmarks of automotive advertising in the past.